Leo Tolstoy 
War and Peace 

The standard Russian text of "War and Peace" is divided into four books (fifteen parts) and an epilogue in two parts. "War and Peace" has a large cast of characters, the majority of whom are introduced in the first book. Some are actual historical figures, such as Napoleon and Alexander I. While the scope of the novel is vast, it is centred around five aristocratic families. The plot and the interactions of the characters take place in the era surrounding the 1812 French invasion of Russia during the Napoleonic Wars. (Excerpt from Wikipedia)